Immediate Family

About Dagobert Levy

In the evening of April 9th, 1943, the family arrived in Vught. Hours they had to stand in line until they finally stood up properly, according to the wishes of the SS-men. First, the men and boys over 13 years in the group were assigned to step out. A big shock because it was promised that the families could stay together. With packing the suitcases, they didn’t pack their bags separately. Then comes an even bigger shock when the women and children under 5 years had to step out of the group. Children aged 5 to 13 years had to stay behind. Mothers were violently forced to leave their children. Dagobert Levy and the other children remained behind on the square, “guarded” by SS-soldiers with machine guns. The family was separated from that moment on. Once a week they were allowed to meet each other. On June 8, 1943, all children younger than 16 years old were deported from Camp Herzogenbusch (through Westerbork) to Sobibor. This is the infamous children's transport. Erwin and Selma accompanied their 13 year old son Dagobert. The trip to Sobibor took three days. The children and their parents were murdered immediately upon arrival. Of the 3017 prisoners who, like Erwin and his family on June 11, arrived in Sobibor, no one survived the war. Gerard Hugenholtz (b.1964)